Nelson Rodrigues, Joe Achzet Win at SUPRS Copper World Classic XIII presented by Kern Motorsports
February 15, 2017 – Avondale, AZ…Stoneham, MA resident Nelson Rodrigues was the winner of the wing supermodified part of the Supermodified Ultimate Pavement Racing Series, (SUPRS) Copper World Classic XIII presented by Kern Motorsports while Joe Achzet led all 25 laps of the non-wing supermodified feature for the win which gave him enough points to claim the SUPRS Copper World Classic Champion Thursday at Phoenix International Raceway.
Nelson Rodrigues and Joe Achzet took home the SUPRS Copper World Classic gold. (SUPRS Victory Lane art by BreezeGraphics.com)
Neither driver had won a Copper World Classic feature before and for Rodrigues it was his first visit to PIR in a supermodified. He now has two wins during his rookie season of supermodified sim racing. The driver of the Star Speedway car also won his heat race for the wing supermodifieds.
For Achzet, it was almost like being a rookie in this race as he hadn’t put rubber to PIR pavement since 2010. He dominated the second feature leading wire to wire and winning by a 2.238 second margin over Callahan.
The Disturbed Motorsports duo of Chad Phelps and Kyle Clark followed Rodrigues closely across the finish line for second and third places in the wing supermodified feature. Former Copper World Classic winner Steve Callahan took second in the non-wing race and Rob Warren salvaged a third after early troubles.
Achzet, with the win and the bonus points he received for winning the overall Copper World Classic Championship, has further closed the gap to SUPRS Gold Crest Wing Championship XIII point leader Rob Warren. After knocking 54 points off Warren’s lead, Achzet is only 84 points out of first place and well within striking distance of his first SUPRS Gold Crest Championship.
Warren fared well in preliminary action for the wing show, setting a new track record, eclipsing Myles Maxon’s two-year old mark of 22.744 by .717 seconds. He then won his heat, but crashed out of a good finish in the feature further damaging his points lead.
Keith Powell of Carrollton, OH, sits third in points and his shining moment of the event was when he lowered the non-wing supermodified track record to 22.222, besting Ray Sand, Junior’s year old lap of 22.335.
The SUPRS Winter Western Swing continues the next week with the President’s Day Special at Buckley Speedway. Practice for the NASCAR Heat supermodified sim racing event starts at 8:00pm with Racing to follow at 9:00pm.
Learn more about supermodified and supermodified sim racing when you visit www.SUPRS.net. “Liking” SUPRS on Facebook, Circling SUPRS on Google+, Following @SUPRSOnline on Twitter, and Viewing SUPRS videos on YouTube keeps you in the loop as well.
SUPRS RACE RESULTS:
- SUPRS Copper World Classic XIII presented by Kern Motorsports
- Race 26-27 of 42
- Friday, February 15, 2017
- SUPRS rFactor W v7.1 mod/SUPRS rFactor NW v1.2 mod
- Phoenix International Raceway
- Duel 25 lap feature
Supermodified (wing) Time Trials (showing car number, driver name, hometown, sponsors, lap 1, lap 2-best lap underlined)
- 35-Rob Warren; Pulaski, NY; 1st to Finish Docks & Hoists, Designs of Elegance: 22.200, 22.027
- 7-Nelson Rodrigues; Stoneham, MA; Star Speedway: 22.323, 22.241
- 38-Kyle Clark; Mexico, NY; Coors’ Light, Disturbed Motorsports: 22.442, 22.247
- 14-Joe Achzet; Yorkville, NY; Cottontail Designs, GraphX: 22.630, 22.254
- 61-Derrick Backus; Mexico, NY; Disturbed Motorsports: 22.468, 22.255
- 55-Steve Callahan; Cuyahoga Falls, OH; Exide Battery, CPR Motorsports: 22.456, 22.351
- 41-Keith Powell; Carrollton, OH; Icings on Top, CPR Motorsports: 22.398, 22.387
- 25-Bob Gangwer; Goshen, IN; Wing Side Up Enterprises, RW Woodworking 22.567, 22.456
- 9-Domenic Gioia; Oswego, NY; Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer, Team Domination Motorsports: 23.144, 22.731
- 42-Carl Becker; Lansing, MI; Wholesale Diamond Exchange, Michigan Hill Gang: 23.896, 23.658
- X-Chad Phelps; New Haven, NY; Haun Welding Supply, Disturbed Motorsports: No Time
Supermodified (wing) Heat Race 1-8 Laps (showing car number, driver name; Top 4 get time back-eligible for feature inversion)
- 35-Rob Warren
- 41-Keith Powell
- 38-Kyle Clark
- 9-Domenic Gioia
- 61-Derrick Backus
Supermodified (wing) Heat Race 2-8 Laps (showing car number, driver name; Top 4 get time back-eligible for feature inversion)
- 7-Nelson Rodrigues
- 55-Steve Callahan
- 25-Bob Gangwer
- 14-Joe Achzet
- 42-Carl Becker
Supermodified (wing) Feature 25 Laps (showing car number, driver name, bonus, starting place, fastest lap, distance behind winner)
- 7-Nelson Rodrigues: * | ** | P7 | 21.992
- X-Chad Phelps: P11 | 22.200 | +0.538
- 38-Kyle Clark: P6 | 22.076 | +0.602
- 25-Bob Gangwer: P2 | 22.675 | +1.247
- 14-Joe Achzet: P5 | 22.103 | +2.541
- 55-Steve Callahan: P4 | 22.611 | +2.611
- 61-Derrick Backus: P9 | 22.533 | +3.067
- 41-Keith Powell: P3 | 22.548 | +3.742
- 9-Domenic Gioia P1 | 22.372 | +7.161
- 42-Carl Becker: P10 | 23.367 | +10.228
- 35-Rob Warren: ! | P8 | 21.860 | +16.749
Time of Race: 19:04.077
- * Denotes Lap Led
- ** Denotes Most Laps Led
- ! Denotes Fastest Lap of Race
Supermodified (Non-Wing) Time Trials (showing car number, driver name, hometown, sponsors, lap 1, lap 2-best lap underlined)
- 41-Keith Powell; Carrollton, OH; Icings on Top, CPR Motorsports: 22.222, 22.351
- 38-Kyle Clark; Mexico, NY; Coors’ Light, Disturbed Motorsports: 22.482, 22.224
- 14-Joe Achzet; Yorkville, NY; Cottontail Designs, GraphX: 22.537, 22.263
- 55-Steve Callahan; Cuyahoga Falls, OH; Exide Battery, CPR Motorsports: 22.689, 22.287
- 7-Nelson Rodrigues; Stoneham, MA; Star Speedway: 22.373, 22.494
- 61-Derrick Backus; Mexico, NY; Disturbed Motorsports: 22.796, 22.413
- 35-Rob Warren; Pulaski, NY; 1st to Finish Docks & Hoists, Designs of Elegance: 22.669, 22.435
- 25-Bob Gangwer; Goshen, IN; Wing Side Up Enterprises, B&G Racing Photos: 22.544, 22.782
- 9-Domenic Gioia; Oswego, NY; Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer, Team Domination Motorsports: 22.876, 22.914
- 42-Carl Becker; Lansing, MI; Wholesale Diamond Exchange, Michigan Hill Gang: 30.306, 25.177
- X-Chad Phelps; New Haven, NY; Haun Welding Supply, Disturbed Motorsports: No Time
Supermodified Feature (non-wing) – 25 Laps (showing car number, driver name, bonus, starting place, fastest lap, distance behind winner)
- 14-Joe Achzet: * | ** | P2 | 22.392
- 55- Steve Callahan: P1 | 22.421 | +2.238
- 35-Rob Warren: P7 | 22.497 | +2.836
- 38-Kyle Clark: ! | P3 | 22.319 | +3.009
- 61-Derrick Backus: P6 | 22.427 | +3.315
- 41-Keith Powell: P4 | 22.466 | +4.411
- 25-Bob Gangwer: P8 | 22.419 | +4.561
- X-Chad Phelps: P11 | 22.893 | +1 Lap
- 42-Carl Becker: P10 | 24.857 | +2Laps
- 9-Domenic Gioia P9 | 22.906 | DNF (Pulled Off)
- 7-Nelson Rodrigues: P5 | 44.097 | DNF (Accident)
Time of Race: 19:28.622
- * Denotes Lap Led
- ** Denotes Most Laps Led
- ! Denotes Fastest Lap of Race
